dishwater
Americannoun
idioms
noun
-
water in which dishes and kitchen utensils are or have been washed
-
something resembling this
that was dishwater, not coffee
Etymology
Origin of dishwater
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Even then, though, I won’t like James Whitaker’s cinematography, which goes for a deliberate ugliness but just looks dishwater drab.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 12, 2026
With its slow pacing, shaky handheld cameras, dishwater cinematography and unnervingly extreme closeups, it feels more like an intense indie drama than a whimsical tale of a robber with a peculiar M.O.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025
From their desks, nearly 30 stories off the ground, they watched as the sky transformed from hazy, slate blue in the morning to dirty, dishwater gray at noon.
From New York Times • Jun. 29, 2023
He was dull as dishwater compared to many of the others vying for the nomination, and nobody had ever really considered him presidential timber.
From Salon • Dec. 30, 2022
"Hoo's On First sounds like my restaurant is on First Street, or worse yet, on the first floor. Customers will end up in the coffee shop drinking dishwater tea."
From "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
